Info from City of Grove City - July/August 2018

A New Way to Discover Grove City

A word from Mayor Richard L. “Ike” Stage

This is it! You are holding the inaugural issue of our new Discover Grove City Magazine designed to highlight our city—boasting the sophistication of a booming metropolitan community while preserving its small-town charm. Having the “best of both worlds” is something we are incredibly proud of and we continue to evolve our communication efforts through digital, social media and print endeavors. I’m excited to watch these pages fill with information about all our community has to offer.

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This is “page one” in a new initiative of print communication for residents and businesses of the southern gateway to central Ohio. Discover Grove City Magazine is now our official publication, furthering our efforts to share our community’s seemingly endless stories of talented, caring and compassionate people who call Grove City home.

One of the most exciting features of this publication is the planned addition of The Source programming guide, merging all future parks and recreation information directly into your community magazine beginning with the September/October edition. The publication will be issued every two months, sharing compelling arts and entertainment articles and previews of upcoming community events.

Our community’s new publication is possible through a unique partnership with CityScene Media Group, widely recognized for high standards of quality and insightful arts and entertainment reporting. Access to the parks and recreation programming guide, in addition to CityScene’s discerning depiction of our community’s sometimes under-celebrated volunteers, students, artists and musicians, make this partnership a winning combination with highly anticipated results!

As the only community twice recognized by Ohio Magazine as the “Best Hometown” in central Ohio, Grove City is richly blessed. It’s time to spread the word using an entirely new medium, enabling everyone to DISCOVER GROVE CITY.

Historic Grove City train depot settles into new stop

In 1884, the Columbus & Cincinnati Midland Railroad completed construction of a 70-mile rail line that stretched from Columbus to Midland City, where it connected with the Marietta and Cincinnati railway.

The arrival of this transportation resource encouraged farmers to produce more crops as the rail gave them access to additional markets outside central Ohio. It also provided free rides to those who shipped their goods. A depot was built later that year at the corner of Front and Park streets to accommodate increased freight and passenger activity to Grove City.

It wasn’t long before the manufacturing businesses in Columbus realized the value of this transportation, and by the 1890s, a daily commuter steam-powered engine with a passenger car was traveling to and from Grove City as an exclusive means of transportation for Columbus Buggy Works.

Find the Grove City train depot in Century Village at Fryer Park, where a team of Southwest Franklin County Historical Society members are working to restore it to resemble a working depot.

The depot became both a morning gathering place for workers waiting for their ride and a point of exit after a day of work. A bustling building, the depot also kept busy as the only Western Union service location for the city.

As competition for passenger and freight transportation increased, the Grove City train depot ended its regular commuter rail service in 1898 when the electric interurban railway began operation, transporting passengers and freight with frequent stops and more flexible traveling options.

In the years following, the Grove City train depot stood firmly at its place to welcome arriving and departing freight cars and occasional passenger trains. It last hosted travelers in July 1956, when the final commuter train made a round trip to Washington Court House.

In 1972, Carillon Historical Park in Dayton, Ohio, showed interest in the building after B&O Railroad abandoned the structure, seeking to feature it in a collection of historically preserved buildings. Grove City community members, however, recognized it as an important piece of history they wanted to keep and preserve.

The Grove City Jaycees, with help from the Grove City Community Historical Society, stepped up and reached an agreement to take ownership of the depot to keep it in Grove City. Serving as a meeting place and special event location for civic groups and other organizations for years, the depot deteriorated and needed significant repairs.

Although the efforts to find a new site and restore the depot began nearly three decades ago, in January 2018, the depot finally completed the arduous process to join the collection of vintage buildings in Century Village at Fryer Park. Its two-and-a-half mile journey on a flatbed truck was the result of a collaboration between the City and many volunteers. A crew of dedicated Southwest Franklin County Historical Society members is in the process of restoring the depot to resemble a working train station and serve as a fun, educational exhibit of a bygone era.

Welcome to the first issue of Discover Grove City Magazine!

A word from the CEO of CityScene Media Group Kathy Gill

I am proud to introduce you to Discover Grove City and give you a first glance into what we have been collaborating on with your City leaders and community organizations for the past year.

In this, and every issue, you will be introduced to community personalities such as GCHS baseball coach Ryan Alexander and recent grad Camille Lanese who share a passion for – and a commitment to – their hometown.

Looking for local events? You can find them right here in the detailed community calendar. Bimonthly columns focusing on home remodeling, recommended books from the library and community pictures will round out the editorial each issue.

Most notably, your parks and recreation guide, The Source, will be included in Discover Grove City starting with the next issue (September/October). We will be more top of mind and timely by bringing you programming options six times a year!

Look for the next issue in your mailbox at the end of August.

CityScene Media Group has a long history as a local, independent publishing company; we will celebrate our 20-year anniversary in 2019. During that time, the company has grown from just CityScene Magazine to include our statewide HealthSceneOhio and six community magazines: Dublin Life, Tri-Village, Westerville, Healthy New Albany, Pickerington and, now, Discover Grove City.

We are excited to add this community magazine to our family and look forward to connecting with you in print and online at www.DiscoverGroveCity.com.